Squirrel Appreciation Day is celebrated every year on January 21st to recognize the role that squirrels play in nature and the environment. It was an unofficial holiday established by American North Carolina wildlife rehabilitator Christy Hargrove in 2001, as an approach to urge individuals to put out seeds and nuts for these cute rodents.
35 Fun Facts about Squirrel
- In Greek, the word ‘squirrel’ signifies ‘shadow tail’. All tree squirrels belong to the genus Sciurus, which comes from the Greek words “skia” (shadow) and “oura” (tail). The name purportedly reflects tree squirrels’ habit of hiding in the shadow of their long, bushy tails.
- There are over 200 species of squirrels found all through North America, Asia, Europe, and Africa. The only part of the world where you won’t discover squirrels in Australia. These mammals differ in size, color, and habitat.
- With 285 species of squirrels, they can be discovered in each continent aside from Antarctica and Australia.
- Squirrels can be categorized into three types: ground squirrels, tree squirrels, and flying squirrels. Flying squirrels can glide through the air because of the flaps of skin that associate their limbs, giving a wing-like surface.
- Squirrel nests are called ‘dreys’. They are compact, spherical structures that are somewhat lighter than footballs. Developed out of twigs, leaves, bark, and grass, they are ordinarily gathered in the forks of tall trees.
- Adult tree squirrels ordinarily live alone, however, they sometimes nest in groups during severe cold spells. A group of squirrels is known as a “scurry” or “dray.”
- A few species including the Eastern Gray Squirrel (Sciurus carolinensis), Fox Squirrel (S. niger), and American Red Squirrel (Tamiascurus hudsonicus) have been noticed swimming as much as two kilometers across lakes and rivers.
- The most famous behavior of squirrels is storing nuts and acorns for winter. Which is vital for the species of squirrel that don’t sleep.
- The hind legs of squirrels are double-jointed, which enables them to run up and down trees rapidly.
- A male squirrel can really smell a female in heat, from up to a mile away.
- The mating season for squirrels is from February to May, with a 44-day gestation period. Generally, two to four youthful are born per litter.
- Squirrels have four front teeth which grow constantly for the duration of their lives, at a rate of around 6 inches (15 cm) every year. This guarantees that their teeth don’t wear out from steady gnawing on nuts and different objects.
- Squirrels have 4 toes on their front feet, which are amazingly sharp and utilized for gripping tree bark while climbing. They additionally have 5 toes on their back feet.
- The greatest species of squirrel is the Indian giant squirrel, which can grow up to an impressive 36 inches (1m) long.
- The smallest is the tiny African pygmy squirrel which is a minute 2.8-5 inches (7-13cm).
- Notwithstanding residing in the Eastern US, Eastern Gray Squirrels can be found in numerous Western states, United Kingdom, Ireland, and South Africa.
- Squirrels can approach 20 mph and have padded feet that cushion bounce from up to 20 feet high. They can likewise utilize their fluffy tails like parachutes to balance themselves during high jumps.
- Squirrels use their fluffy tails to balance when traveling all through treetops and electrical lines. A squirrel’s tail can likewise serve as a parachute to ease falls – squirrels can fall from heights of up to 100 feet without harming themselves.
- Most of a squirrel’s diet comprises of the hard mast like acorns, hickory nuts, walnuts, or seeds. Truth be told, from September through March, one squirrel needs around 1.5 lbs. of mast every week to survive. Since a squirrel’s digestive system isn’t equipped to absorb cellulose, they will just eat green plants, twigs, and bark in desperation.
- When jumping, or falling, they use their tail both for balance and as a parachute!
- Squirrels are one of the most important animals for aiding the spread of oak trees. They store acorns in the ground yet just recuperate around 70% of them, permitting the failed to remember acorns to develop into healthy trees.
- The grey squirrel is referred to in its native North America as the Eastern gray squirrel: it happens from the Great Lakes south to Texas and Florida.
- An arctic ground squirrel (a species of ground squirrel native to the Arctic.) is the only warm-blooded mammal ready to withstand body temperatures underneath freezing while sleeping.
- Squirrel’s eyes are situated in a manner that permits them to see behind them.
- In 2013, specialists shut down camping in Los Angeles National Forest when they found an infected squirrel living there. The infection really killed a 15-year-old kid from Kyrgyzstan, which he got from a mountain squirrel. 100 individuals must be quarantined so this disease would be contained.
- Squirrels are clever creatures and can learn to explore various obstacles to find the most proficient route to food, they’re additionally good at discovering easy routes.
- Squirrels can bounce a distance of up to 20 feet. They have long, muscular hind legs and short front legs that cooperate to help in jumping.
- Squirrels communicate using complex systems of high-frequency chirps and tail movements. Studies have additionally discovered they’re equipped for watching and gaining from one another — particularly if it identifies with taking food.
- At the point when squirrels feel threatened, they run away in a zigzag pattern. This is an amazingly valuable methodology to get away from hawks and different predators. Shockingly, it doesn’t function admirably on vehicles.
- In the 2005 remake of Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, for the squirrel scene, the squirrels were not CGI, but rather were in reality and were professionally trained by The Nut Room Animal trainer Michael Alexander and his team who went through 19 weeks of training these squirrels for this one scene.
- In 1963, the city of Longview, Washington, has a bridge named Nutty Narrows. The 18 meters (60 ft) long bridge has transformed the town into the squirrel-lovers’ capital of America. Longview currently holds an annual Squirrel Fest in August every year.
- Squirrels have been demonstrated to run at speeds of 20 miles for each hour, anyway generally, most squirrels run half this.
- There are some very unique squirrel species around the globe.
- The tufted ground Squirrel, just found in Borneo, has a story that is 130% the size of its body.
- The Kaibab squirrel has a pure white tail and just dwells in the Grand Canyon Region of Arizona.
- The Indian palm squirrel has striking brown and white stripes which even inspired a Hindu legend.
- Squirrels are more adaptable than you may think. They can fit through a hole the size of a baseball (black/grey squirrels) or a golf ball (red squirrels). Also, more modest holes can without much of a stretch be chewed open.
- Europe’s local red squirrel is found all through much of Europe. Its habitat reaches out from northern Scandinavia to southern Spain, extending east to Hokkaido in Japan.
